Camillo Astalli
Camerlengo of the Sacred College of Cardinals (1661–1662) |
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Camillo Astalli (21 October 1616 – 21 December 1663)
Early life
Camillo Astalli belonged to a noble but relatively poor family. He was born in Sambuci, at Tivoli, 21 October 1616 to Fulvio and Catherine Pinelli Astalli. He studied at the
He became the assistant to the Secretary of State, Cardinal
Ecclesiastic career
When first elected to the papal throne,
He served as governor of Fermo and papal legate for the district of Avignon from 1650 to 1653.
Downfall
In his absence, though, Cardinal Panciroli died and Astalli believed his good fortune would fade with the death of his mentor. In particular, Donna Olimpia Maidalchini had been gaining favour with her brother-in-law the Pope. Seeking support from abroad, Astalli took King
The unexpected generosity of the pope, however, put him against the Pamphilj family and especially Donna Olimpia, so much so that, aided by a series of bad policy choices, as well as a certain inability to handle the Roman Curia, he soon fell out of favor at the papal Court.[4]
In February 1654, with little warning, Pope Innocent stripped Astalli of his titles for allegedly revealing the secrets of state to Spain (plans to invade the Kingdom of Naples). The offence was uncovered by Maidalchini's "spy", Decio Azzolino. The Pope deprived him of the title of Cardinal-Nephew. Astalli was sent from Rome to govern the Diocese of Ferrara. However he did not accept this position and it so infuriated Innocent X that revoked all privileges, even eliminating his adoption into the Pamphili family. He forbade Astalli to use the family name and arms of Pamphili, and in 1655 exiled him to Sambuci.
On the death of the pope, as a sign of contempt, Astalli showed up at the funeral without being dressed in mourning. Contemporary John Bargrave would later recall that at the funeral of Cardinal Panciroli (at the Quirinal Palace), others told him that it had been the Pope's plan all along for Astalli to take responsibility for a number of failures and scandals and then be removed shortly before the Pope's death to ensure his estate was inherited by his original Cardinal-Nephew, Camillo Pamphili.[5]
Later career
Nonetheless, when Innocent X died, Astalli was still a Cardinal and participated in the
On 24 January 1661 the cardinals elected him to the post of
References
- ^ Rene Rapin: Memoires, ed. Leon Aubvineau, Paris, 1865, p. 423
- ^ a b c d e Miranda, Salvador. "The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church: ASTALLI-PAMPHILJ, Camillo (1619-1663)". The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church. Archived from the original on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 29 February 2016.
- ^ a b c d "Camillo Cardinal Astalli-Pamphilj" Catholic-Hierarchy.org. David M. Cheney. Retrieved September 19, 2016
- ^ a b c De Caro, Gasparo. "Astalli, Caillo", Dizionario Biografico, Treccani, vol.4, 1962
- ^ a b c d Pope Alexander the Seventh and the College of Cardinals by John Bargrave, edited by James Craigie Robertson (reprint; 2009)
- ^ S. Miranda: Archived 2010-07-05 at the Wayback Machine Camillo Astalli
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